Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Rockville’s government kept moving forward throughout 2021, and several major initiatives came to fruition.
JANUARY
Maryland must make more COVID-19 vaccine doses available to Montgomery County residents, the Mayor and Council wrote in a Jan. 26 letter to the state.
“The City is deeply concerned about the low number of vaccines that are being distributed to the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), relative to other Maryland jurisdictions,” the letter said.
The new Rockville skate park construction was well underway, with concrete being poured to form some of its obstacles. The new 15,000-squre-foot concrete skate venue, located in the Rockville Swim and Fitness Center outdoor pool parking lot, at 355 Martins Lane, replaced the old wood and steel park, which had deteriorated after close to two decades in operation.
FEBRUARY
The Mayor and Council adopted a zoning amendment to allow implementation of the East Rockville Design Guidelines and Standards. The guidelines include requirements, in addition to the existing residential zoning, that apply to new single-unit home construction and significant additions to existing homes.
The City of Rockville was the top-scoring Maryland municipality in an analysis of cities’ energy efficiency and renewable energy strategies. Rockville scored 27 out of 70 on the City Clean Energy Scorecard for electric vehicle charging stations at Thomas Farm Community Center, placing it seventh among 30 small and mid-sized cities that were nationally ranked.
MARCH
Construction began on the pedestrian bridge linking Rockville Town Center and the Rockville Metro Station over Rockville Pike.
The city ranked seventh overall and fourth among small cities in the U.S. for its ethnic diversity, placing highly once again in an annual WalletHub study. Rockville, Gaithersburg, Germantown and Silver Spring occupied the top four spots on WalletHub’s list and four of the top 10 spots among all cities, of any size, in the entire United States.
Rockville’s Mayor and Council issued a statement supporting the Asian American Pacific Islander community and immigrants, rejecting racism and bullying, and offering condolences in the wake of a mass shooting that killed eight people, including six women of Asian descent, on March 16 in Atlanta.
The Mayor and Council were set to begin their review of the Planning Commission’s draft comprehensive plan update.
Eight parks in Rockville had newly installed bicycle racks, with another installation to come. Dogwood, Elwood Smith, Potomac Woods, Rockcrest, Welsh, Woodley Gardens and Woottons Mill parks each received a new rack. Rockville’s newest park, RedGate, had two. A new bike rack was scheduled to be installed at Hillcrest Park following asphalt path repairs in spring.
APRIL
The process began to determine what RedGate Park’s future should look like. The city launched a new website — and a survey — at engagerockville.com/redgate-park to gather thoughts and ideas, and discuss what RedGate Park should become.
The Human Rights and Human Services Advisory commissions of the City of Rockville launched a communitywide survey at the direction of the Mayor and Council to assess the state of social justice, racism and bias in the city, as well as the availability and appropriateness of city services during the pandemic.
The city began work on a study of the Rockville Metro Station in coordination with the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority and Montgomery County. The process will result in recommendations for possible development and site improvements on WMATA-owned property at the station.
The results from a 2020 survey on the focus for Rockville’s Climate Action Plan were in: Reducing greenhouse gas, addressing racial equity and protecting future generations, were cited by some of the 525 respondents.
State aid for renovations to Lincoln Park Community Center as well as education, and measures to combat climate change, were among the wins for Rockville during the Maryland General Assembly session, which concluded this month.
Rockville’s Mayor and Council called on state Comptroller Peter Franchot to vote against the state project to add toll lanes to interstates 270 and 495 between the American Legion Bridge and Frederick. In a letter, the Mayor and Council urged Franchot to join the Montgomery County Council in opposing the public-private partnership, or “P3,” project.
MAY
The Rockville City Police Department’s commitment to community policing continued in spring with work by the city’s newly constituted Community Policing Advisory Board and training focused on helping community members.
After 17 years in the ground, Brood X cicadas were once again emerging in their trillions. Although indisputably creepy, with bulging red eyes and loudly distinctive drone, the insects are harmless to humans and pets.
In May and June, the city’s Department of Public Works completed six new crosswalks along West Edmonston (two each at Carter Road and Ritchie Parkway and one each at Curtis and Hardy places), improving safety along the route for students walking to Bayard Rustin Elementary School, which opened in 2018. The city also completed two new crosswalks at Harrington Road and one new crosswalk at Maxim Lane.
JUNE
The City of Rockville observed Juneteenth as a city holiday for the first time with a panel discussion and community service activities. In July 2020, the Mayor and Council approved a resolution making Rockville the first municipality in Maryland to recognize Juneteenth as a paid city holiday.
Angela Judge, formerly an assistant city manager with Elizabeth City, North Carolina, was appointed by City Manager Rob DiSpirito as Rockville’s next deputy city manager. Judge began in her new role on June 14.
The new Rockville Skate Park officially opened for community use. The skate park features an entrance building with a family/gender-neutral restroom, lighting, landscaping, parking, a stormwater management facility and access road improvements.
A portion of Baltimore Road closed to vehicles and pedestrians for several months as part of a city project to improve safety and access along this corridor between Rockville Town Center and the city’s east side.
Motorists could face significantly higher fines for illegally parking near fire hydrants, in fire lanes or in designated handicap parking spaces after the Mayor and Council approved increases that bring fines in the City of Rockville in line with those of neighboring jurisdictions
JULY
The Mayor and Council appointed Virginia attorney Robert E. Dawson as the city’s corporate counsel, a title he will hold until he is admitted to the Maryland bar, when he will officially become Rockville’s new city attorney.
AUGUST
The City of Rockville is now Maryland’s fourth most populous incorporated place — down from third a decade ago, according to results of the 2020 census released in August. According to the census, which is conducted every 10 years, on April 1, 2020, the population of the City of Rockville totaled 67,117 people. This was an increase of 5,908 people (9.7%) from 2010 when the city’s population was 61,209.
The Mayor and Council adopted the Rockville 2040 Comprehensive Plan update, following a yearslong process that involved hundreds of voices from the community, elected and appointed leaders, and city staff, which helped shape the final document.
SEPTEMBER
In their ongoing fight to bring awareness to the national impact of opioid addiction and signal hope for recovery, the Mayor and Council held several events throughout September as part of Rockville Goes Purple, the city’s continuing campaign to highlight the nationwide impact and dangers of opioids.
Metro began demolishing and reconstructing the platform canopy at its Rockville station and repairing the canopy at Shady Grove. The Red Line is the oldest line in the Metrorail system and the canopies’ concrete beam structures, original to construction in the 1980s, were deteriorating.
A portion of Mt. Vernon Place closed for four months as part of the city’s improvements to the Mt. Vernon stormwater management facility.
A weekend of celebrations marked the opening of a new destination in the city — the Rock East District, which gathers Rockville’s artists, professionals, makers and tradespeople together into a defined geographic location. The district, which runs along East Gude Drive from Frederick Road to Norbeck Road, includes more than 60 area businesses, or “makers and traders,” as well as parks and trails.
Spikes in the COVID-19 delta variant led DiSpirito to cancel two highly attended October special events. “In the interest of better assuring the health and safety of our residents, visitors and city employees in the face of the extremely concerning recent trends with this COVID-19 pandemic, as city manager I am today canceling both of the city’s high-attendance public events scheduled for this fall: Rocktobierfest and the annual Antique and Classic Car Show,” DiSpirito said in a message to the Mayor and Council.
The city began construction to install bicycle lanes in both directions on Maryland Avenue between South Washington Street and Great Falls Road.
OCTOBER
Rockville elected officials joined Peerless Rockville and community members to celebrate the designation of the former home of pioneering psychiatrist Frieda Fromm-Reichmann as Rockville’s first National Historic Landmark.
The city reminded residents about flooding risks after parts of Rockville experienced devastating flooding from the remnants of Hurricane Ida, which blew through the city as a tropical depression on Sept. 1.
Stacey Webster, the city’s deputy chief financial officer and a longtime member of Rockville’s finance department, became the city’s next chief financial officer/director of finance, DiSpirito announced.
The F. Scott Fitzgerald Literary Festival honored prolific award-winning author John Edgar Wideman with the 2021 F. Scott Fitzgerald Award for Outstanding Achievement in American Literature.
Road closures in Rockville that allow outdoor dining on Gibbs Street and East Montgomery Avenue will remain in place indefinitely, Mayor Bridget Donnell Newton told the community.
NOVEMBER
Employees of the City of Rockville were required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by Nov. 15, unless exempt for religious or medical reasons, under a policy adopted by the Mayor and Council.
DECEMBER
See December’s highlights in this edition!